This disclosure relates generally to the field of power transmission, and in particular, to a method and apparatus for transmitting and receiving power wirelessly.
In general, the total power transmitted by a wireless power transmitter will be limited to some maximum power by e.g. regulatory limitations. There are generally two approaches to deliver power to multiple receivers from a single transmitter.
The first is for all receivers to receive a portion of the total transmitted power simultaneously. Simultaneous delivery of power has drawbacks. At fixed operating conditions, it is difficult to optimize efficiency for all receivers simultaneously, causing the system to have a low net efficiency. Further, complex control circuitry is required at the receiver side to ensure that power is shared among multiple receivers according to some agreed-upon protocol.